Jesse Marsch says he didn't need success with Canada to prove his coaching ability

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Having led Canada to the semifinals of the Copa America, coach Jesse Marsch said he didn't need success to prove his ability after he was fired by Leeds and overlooked by the U.S. Soccer Federation.

“I felt how strongly they wanted me here, and I’m at a point in my life where I don’t need all the other bull----,” Marsch said during a news conference ahead of Tuesday's match against Argentina.

He laughed as Monday's news conference was being simultaneously translated.

“I don’t know how you say that in Spanish, OK?” he explained with a grin.

Marsch took over Leeds in February 2022 from Marcelo Bielsa with the team two points above the relegation zone and led it to a 17th-place finish, three points above the drop. He was fired a year later with the team in 17th, above the relegation zone on goal difference, and Leeds finished 19th and went down to the second tier League Championship.

He interviewed with the USSF last year before Gregg Berhalter was rehired, and Canada gave the 50-year-old Marsch its national team job in May. While Canada advanced in its first Copa America appearance, the host U.S. was eliminated in the group stage.

“I never doubted my ability as a coach,” Marsh said. “What I’ve always doubted in this business is how do you find the right people to work with? And so the best thing about where I’m at right now is it feels home to me. It feels like I’m working with a group of players that I think value the things that I bring. I value the things that they’re about.”

Canada had not reached the World Cup since 1986 when it qualified for the 2022 tournament under coach John Herdman. It went 0-3 in Qatar. Herdman left in August to coach Toronto in Major League Soccer after saying the Canada Soccer Association did not provide the national team with the necessary financial support and resources.

Marsch was hired after Peter Augruso replaced Charmaine Crooks as CSA president.

“I think the Canadian Soccer Association is a humble but professional organization and that the new leadership is fantastic,” Marsch said. “The people in the country have been 100% behind us in what we’re doing with this team and you could take out the victories and the successes that we’ve had at this tournament. From day one, I’ve felt that. It’s the reason I came. It’s because I felt how strongly they wanted me here.”

Marsch's first two games were a pair of friendlies in Europe, a 4-0 loss at the Netherlands and a 0-0 draw at France.

Canada opened the Copa America with a 2-0 loss to defending champion Argentina, beat Peru 1-0 for its first win over a South American team in 24 years and advanced to the knockout rounds with a 0-0 draw against Chile.

Canada won its quarterfinal against Venezuela 4-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie.

“I want to do things I want to do," Marsch said. "I want to get back to loving the game that I love, and this team has helped me finding that, and I’m very thankful for that.”

A standout college player at Princeton, Marsch made two appearances for the U.S. and was an assistant to Bob Bradley with the national team in 2010-11.

He coached Montreal (2011-12) and the New York Red Bulls (2015-18) in Major League Soccer, then moved up to coaching sister teams, Red Bull Salzburg in Austria (2019-21) and RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga, which fired him in December 2021 midway through his first season.

AP Copa America coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/copa-america

Canada head coach Jesse Marsch reacts on the sideline during a Copa America quarterfinal soccer match between Venezuela and Canada, Friday, July 5, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Canada head coach Jesse Marsch signals to his players during a Copa America quarterfinal soccer match between Venezuela and Canada in Arlington, Texas, Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Canada head coach Jesse Marsch, right, disputes a call during a Copa America quarterfinal soccer match between Venezuela and Canada, Friday, July 5, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Canada head coach Jesse Marsch celebrates the team's win in a Copa America quarterfinal soccer match between Venezuela and Canada in Arlington, Texas, Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Rodriguez)

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told lawmakers Wednesday that recent arson attacks on properties linked to him represent “an attack on all of us, on democracy and the values that we stand for."

The remarks by Starmer during weekly prime minister's questions were his first since the fires came to light earlier this week.

The attacks were condemned by leaders across the House of Commons, including the Conservative Party's Kemi Badenoch, who described them as "completely unacceptable.”

On Tuesday, London's Metropolitan Police arrested a 21-year-old man in southeast London on suspicion of starting fires at Starmer's private house, another property and a car connected to the politician. No injuries were reported from any of the fires.

In a statement Wednesday, police said they have been granted a further 36 hours to question the man, who is being held at a London police station. That means he can be questioned until Friday morning.

Police said the suspect was detained on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life after an early morning fire Monday damaged the door of the house in Kentish Town, north London, where Starmer and his family lived before he was elected to lead the country last July. Starmer moved with his family to the prime minister’s official Downing Street residence after taking office.

Counterterrorism detectives, who are leading the investigation because it involves the prime minister, are also looking into connections between a car fire Thursday near Starmer’s house and another fire Sunday outside a house nearby that has been converted into apartments and which he has a connection to.

Authorities are investigating whether there was state involvement as well as looking at other potential motivations.

“A key line of enquiry is whether the fires are linked due to the two premises and the vehicle all having previous links to the same high-profile public figure,” said Cmdr. Dominic Murphy, head of counterterrorism at the Metropolitan Police.

Starmer’s former house has attracted protesters in the past. Last year, three pro-Palestinian activists were arrested and charged with public order offenses after unfurling a banner covered in red handprints outside the building.

Police Community Support Officers and Police Officers stand on the street near a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Fire damage is seen in the doorway of a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Fire damage is seen in the doorway of a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Police Community Support Officers stand near the fire damaged doorway of a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)